Japan jobless rate lower but prices still falling

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Japan's unemployment rate eased slightly in July, while consumer prices continued to deflate, according to Ministry of Internal Affairs data released Friday. The July unemployment rate edged down to 5.2%, while economists had expected the rate to remain steady with June's 5.3% reading, according to a survey reported by Dow Jones Newswires. The month's nationwide consumer price index continued to drop, falling 1.1% year-on-year to match separate surveys by Dow Jones Newswires and Reuters. In June, the CPI had lost 1% from the year-earlier month. In other data Friday morning, household spending rose 1.1% year-on-year after adjusting for deflation, below forecasts for 1.3% and 1.4% gains in surveys from Reuters and Dow Jones, respectively. However, the figure -- which covers households of two or more people and is adjusted for deflation -- was above June's 0.5% year-on-year gain.

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